


The Ostara Rites

by ChameleonSerket



Category: The Yogscast
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-25
Updated: 2014-11-25
Packaged: 2018-02-26 23:58:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2671244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ChameleonSerket/pseuds/ChameleonSerket
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A witchy celebration</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Ostara Rites

Spring explodes into the cherry lands with showers of rain and cherry blossoms and animals that can’t wait to get out of the cottage and gambol in the sunshine. Lomadia strolls down the steps and takes a moment to stretch, filling her lungs with warm, clean air, letting the weak springtime sun shine on her face, revelling at the sand between her bare toes. She stands there, pyjamas and all, until she hears a moan from inside.

“Lom, why are the curtains open?”

She laughs and skips back into the hut. It’s Nilsey, his eyes resolutely shut against the light’s tirade. “About time you woke up, sleepybones! I’ve been pottering around for hours waiting for the rain to stop. D’you want a cup of tea?”

Nilsey’s eyes creak open. “I would love a cup of tea. Lemon, if you please.”

“Honey? Xephos dropped some off last time he visited.”

Nilsey mumbles something that sounds like a yes and buries deeper into his bedsheets.  Lomadia grins and busies herself with the kettle. She finds herself humming as she squeezes lemons and spoons honey into twin chipped cups. Her mood is so infectious Nilsey starts beaming within his protective cocoon and when Lomadia sits on his bed to present him with his tea he greets her with a smile.

“So what’s got you in such a good mood today Lom?” he reaches for his tea and breathes in its fumes appreciatively.

She takes a sip before answering “It’s the first day of spring Nilsey! That means we’ll be performing the Ostara rites and they’re my _favourite_.”

“Is that today? Ach, I lose all sense of time in this messed- up hut.”

Lomadia slaps his knee “Hey, I spent time building this!”

“Careful now Lomadia, you don’t want me spilling my tea before I’ve taken a drink!” Nilsey moves quickly to rectify this, taking a sip and sighing. “You do make the best teas Lom.”

“I know!” she sings and hops up off his bed. “Now, finish that off and get dressed. We have a lot to do today to get ready for the rites this afternoon.” She grabs some clothes out of her chest and disappears upstairs to follow her own advice.

The morning passes in a flurry of making wicker bundles and gathering armfuls of sweet smelling flowers. Lomadia gets hot quickly and hangs her jacket on the fence, tying up her already sticky hair and letting herself rest for a moment. Nilsey is faring much worse than her. He’s shed not only his tie but his shirt and looks ridiculous in clad only in grey pants, glasses and his wide brimmed witch hat. Lomadia can’t help but laugh at his distressed, sweaty face.

“Well just you try growing up in the highlands and then coming to live here in this humid mess Lomadia! You’re used to muggy air.”

“Well I would have thought you’d be used to it too after all that time on Owl Island!”

“The heart remembers winter Lomadia. Winter is my default. This is abnormally warm.”

She almost ruffles his hair until she sees the sweat dripping from it and settles for a weak pat on his shoulder. “You are the worst Nilsey. Let’s get this strawman finished and then we’ll have a dip in the pond, shall we?”

They work in concentrated silence for a while, Lomadia lifting the bundles into place and Nilsey strapping them down with strong cord.

The sun climbs higher into the sky and the strawman begins to take shape in the glade to the back of the cottage. They work in concentrated silence for a while, Lomadia lifting the bundles into place and Nilsey strapping them down with strong cord. An easier job is decorating the figure with flowers and Nilsey strings together the stems to make long colourful cords that he drapes artfully over the structure with the help of his broom. Lomadia would rather not have any close encounters with trees if she can help it and spreads flowers in a thick fragrant carpet around the base of the strawman.

“Okay Lom I think I’m done and I am _dying_ of heat. I think there’s going to be a big storm this afternoon.”

“You might be right there Nilsey. You go get clean and ready then, I’ll just draw up a few quick circles.” She sets up two, one to protect from rain and a smaller one to contain fire then makes her way back up to the house.

Nilsey has already shed his clothes and is splashing happily in the pond when Lomadia arrives.

“There you are Lom!” He warbles. “Come on in, the water’s fine!”

Lomadia smiles wryly, strips off to her underwear and before Nilsey can figure out her plan and protest, bombs into the water right next to him. She pops her head out of the water and laughs gleefully at Nilsey who is shrieking as he wipes water out of his eyes.

They lie boneless in the shallows and the sun, letting the springtime air wash over them. It’s too soon when they hear a cheerful voice calling from the forest.

“Lom! Nilsey! What on earth are you two doing?”

Lomadia rises slowly out of the pond, letting her hair flow back over shoulders. It’s Kim at the gate, of course, and she can’t help but grin at the purple arm frantically waving over the fence. She is, however, surprised to see Duncan standing quietly behind Kim. She motions them in. Kim practically skips up the little path and flops down beside the pool. She raises an eyebrow at Lomadia’s underwear and Nilesy’s boxer shorts.

“I see you’ve gone feral there guys! Is that what being elbows deep in witchery does to a person?”

Nilesy goes scarlet.

“Kim, always a delight. How’s that purple stuff?”

“Not bad, actually! I think those potions you made for me have been helping a lot! And, oh, hello Nilesy’s unders!” She squawks with delight as Nilesy tries to quietly clamber out of the pond, blushing all the way down his neck.

“I didn’t expect you to guys to be here so soon!” he protests and Lomadia laughs.

“Oh, go get changed Nilesy. I’ll get ready in a bit.”

Duncan sits down next to Kim and Lomadia spends the next few minutes in easy conversation. When Nilesy appears at the doorway again she excuses herself and disappears upstairs to get changed.

Lomadia is half dressed when she hears Nilesy yelling from the garden.

“Lom! The Northern Circle is at the gate!”

She mutters darkly under her breath before poking her head out the window and hollering down “I’ll let them in Nilsey! Give me one minute!”

She pulls her shirt over her head and bolts down the stairs, out the door and up the garden path. She’s just in time to prevent Nilsey from shaking the hand proffered over the fence. She glares up at the hand’s owner who is grinning innocently and rubbing one of his antlers.

“Kirin” she says flatly.

“Lomadia, Nilsey, always a pleasure.”

“I hope you’re happy with yourself.”

Kirin looks away and sniffs “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You know exactly what I’m talking about you great big lightning rod! Thunder clouds? In the Cherry lands? On Ostara? There is no way you haven’t had a hand in all of this.”

Nilsey glances up, his hair sticking to his forehead already. “You mean this ungodly heat isn’t normal?”

Kirin has the grace to look slightly sheepish.

“Anyway. Kirin, Lying, Su.” Lomadia says, nodding to each of them in turn. “You all know the rules. Welcome to our home. You’re just in time for the rites.”

“Well then, what are we waiting for?” Su pipes up. “This has always been my favourite celebration.”

“Mine too,” Lomadia beams.

Lying scowls. “I much prefer Samhain. More... accommodating to my tastes.”

Su sighs and clips him across the ears. “Behave, you.”

Kim and Duncan have padded up silently behind Lomadia and Nilsey and Kim slings her arms around their shoulders, making Nilesy jump and Lomadia’s heart skip a quiet beat. She schools her breath.

“I assume you’re ready for the rites then Kim?”

“Uh-huh!” She grabs Nilesy’s hand and kicks open the gate, trailing the other guests down to the glade. Lomadia watches them go with a fond smile, then starts when she realises Duncan is still standing next to her. He can be awfully quiet for a boisterous mad scientist when he wants to be.

“This is your first Ostara, right Duncan?”

“Yeah. Kim didn’t exactly explain it to me well. She got a bit focussed on the, ah, ritual burning.”

“Well why don’t you come help me grab some drinks out of the cellar and I’ll explain on the way.”

She shows him to the trapdoor and they climb carefully down the ladder into the cool rock basement of the hut.

“Jeez, how do you get your liquor in and out of this joint?” Duncan asks when he reaches the bottom. “I could rig up an elevator system in here real easy. It might be a bit hard to operate when you’re plastered, but no more than that ladder would be. It’s nice to get out of that humidity though. Let’s celebrate in here.”

Lomadia laughs. “Thanks Duncan, but it’s surprising how much you can carry up the ladder when you really really want it. And we prefer to keep things low tech around here. Sometimes electronics mess with our altar. I do have a feeling that the weather is going to break soon though so you’ll only have to worry about rain.” She starts stacking bottles into her backpack and Duncan quickly joins her. “Now, you wanted to know a bit more about Ostara?”

“Yeah, I know it’s about spring and rebirth and whatnot, and I know there’s a fire involved but apart from that I’m not really sure what’s going on.”

“Well yeah, you’ve got the basics down. Us witches celebrate Ostara on the first day of spring. It is about birth and renewal but more importantly it’s a way for us to reconnect with the newly growing things after winter and to recharge our magic. The burning of the strawman basically represents a cleansing of the earth and of ourselves but I think Kim enjoys it because she gets to set something on fire. Also it’s a great excuse to get drunk and dance.”

“Well, you learn something new every day. Not about Kim, of course, I know that already. Any excuse for a fire.”

“Any excuse at all. Alright, you got a good amount of drinks? Then let’s get this party started.”

They climb back up the ladder and the heat hits them like a ton of bricks. Duncan groans.

“I knew I should have worn my short sleeved labcoat.”

Lomadia just hums and glares at the sky. It’s a rolling grey tapestry by now and the thick clouds are circling closer and closer to the glade, threatening imminent rainfall. She’s never been gladder that she took the time to put a rain protection spell around the strawman. In the clearing Kim is already dancing, holding two sticks wrapped in cloth and primed for a fire. The other four are talking and Lomadia arrives just in time to stop Kirin from ruffling Nilesy’s hair. She glances over at Su who just shrugs.

“You know Kirin would ensure he never came to any harm, Lomadia. He’d be under the protection of the Northern Circle.”

“You have just outlined exactly what I’m worried about, Su.”

“That’s fair.”

“You two do know I’m still right here.” Kirin rumbles angrily. “I’m not too enthusiastic about you talking over my head like this.”

“I’m still here too!” Nilsey pipes up indignantly and Lomadia pats his shoulder.

Su giggles and gently grabs one of Kirin’s ram horns. “Like we could talk over your head. Our words would be obstructed by these big old monstrosities.”

Kirin scowls, Lying smirks, Duncan sets down his backpack with a nervous clink and just as Lomadia starts to worry that she’s going to have to do some serious bridge building to keep the Northern Circle friendly, Kim sets fire to the sticks and starts yelling, which derails the entire situation. She wipes the sweat off her brow and helps Nilesy to his feet.

“I’m sorry for talking over you Kirin. Shall we begin the rites?”

He rises to his feet like a mountain and smiles down at her softly. “No offense was taken Lomadia. I guess you can blame a witch for trying. We’d better go and stop Kim from burning down the forest, huh?”

Duncan laughs. “If this keeps up we won’t have to worry about the fire. This storm is going to be a shocker.”

“All the more reason to get this rite done” says Lomadia. She drops her backpack and turns her attention towards Kim, still gambolling around the glen with fire in her fists and excitement in her eyes. “Kim! Put those out! We have the chants to do yet!”

“Aw!” Kim looks about ready to put out the sticks by dropping them on the ground and Duncan rushes over to take them from her before she can do any damage.

The circle they make around the strawman has been very carefully planned by Lomadia and just about everyone knows it. Kirin is flanked by Su and Lying. Lomadia has positioned herself next to Lying and Kim next to Sue. Duncan and Nilesy are between them. She can feel Lying laughing at her paranoia but the other two members of the Northern Circle both nod sagely at her as they take their places. They all breathe deeply and begin. Duncan, she can see out of the corner of her eye, is one step behind everyone else as they pace out their steps and draw sigils in the air with their hands but he’s doing surprisingly well for a beginner and the ritual feels whole and complete.

“Alright Kim,” Lomadia says quietly “ _Now_ you can light the fire.”

The strawman roars into flames as the heavens open and Lomadia turns her face towards the sky, revelling in the cool rain and the heat from the flames. The air turns sweet and soft instantly and she breathes in deeply, washing the humidity out of her system. This is what Ostara is about, she thinks as the flames beat against the protective circle and Kirin gets hit by a bolt of lightning and goes scurrying under a tree. This is magic. Nilsey slips a gentle hand across her shoulders and looks at the burning strawman.

“I think we did a good job with this one Lom.”

She follows his gaze and puts her arm around his waist. Their hard work is blazing along merrily, the flower garlands dripping into ash around a red core of flames. She smiles.

“Yeah, I think we did good.”

They stand in the rain for a while and Lomadia allows herself a brief moment of relaxation, putting her head on Nilsey’s shoulder and humming quietly to herself. They stand still until she hears bottles clinking.

“Oh Duncan, I see you’re getting into the good stuff already huh?”

He looks up from the backpack, wild- eyed and dripping with raindrops.

“Uh, is that okay? I just thought-”

“Duncan.” She cuts him off. “I’ll help.”

She strolls over and gathers up her bag, passing out drinks to everyone. She even ducks under the tree Kirin is sulking under and waggles a bottle of wine enticingly at him.

“Peace offering? It’s a good vintage.”

“I can’t say no to one of your reds Lomadia. Do you want me to handle the music for tonight? I’m going to be stuck under this tree for a while.”

“That would be great Kirin.”

He nods, waves his hands over and under each other and conjures and entire ghostly band of instruments at his command.

“Any requests?”

“I think I’ll let Kim choose. She’s good at picking music that everyone will like.”

She strolls out from under the relative dryness of the tree and sends Kim over to him. Su follows and settles down crossed legged under the tree. A lively jig starts up, Su’s voice soars over the instruments and even Lying starts tapping his ruby slippers to the beat. Duncan waves Lomadia over and she trots though the shallow puddles to join him in a dance. Nilsey comes splashing over and whirls them around and around together, happy with magic and fire and rain and alcohol. Lomadia grins. It's going to be a good night. 

**Author's Note:**

> The wonderful artist who drew for this fic can be found at jaffaindustriesspacemining.tumblr.com


End file.
